Wednesday, January 31, 2018

Chatbots
are proving to be a great way for hoteliers to automate their responses to some
of the more routine requests made by their guests. Today’s hotel guest expects
quick answers to any questions they may have and the rapid resolution of any issues,
which may arise during their stay. Chatbots are a valuable tool available to
hotels for providing excellent customer service more efficiently.

More
than merely a tool for improving hotel guest service communication efficiency,
chatbots offer a number of other advantages to hoteliers when implemented. They
are capable of completely managing nearly every aspect of a hotel guest’s stay,
from booking and arrival on-property, to check out, and beyond. The learning
ability of chatbots aids them in more effectively leveraging direct bookings.
After an initial investment, chatbots can also provide hoteliers with
significant cost reductions as well in the form of automating many
labor-intensive tasks. For example, simple notifications to guests, which might
normally be made by front desk staff regarding subjects such as room
availabilities, check-out times, or ancillary service reservations may be
completed by a chatbot messenger.

Chatbots
also have the capability to incorporate machine learning into the completion of
their tasks, empowering them to offer hotel guests an extremely high degree of
customer personalization. Powerfully relevant marketing messages may be created
for each guest going forward as the chatbot learns their preferences, resulting
in maximized revenue generation from every stay. Following the hotel stay,
chatbots are highly effective for maintaining contact with the guest. To past
guests, they can pass along relevant promotional offers based on data gathered
from previous stays, feedback surveys, and other brand loyalty incentives.

Some
best practices for implementing chatbots into any hotel’s guest services should
include ensuring the brand’s website always offers the best rates of any
booking platform before hand. The hotel website also needs to be fully
optimized for mobile devices, where most travel searches are initiated. The
user experience should be highly visual and intuitive, with clear calls to
action along the user’s path. Additionally, at all points of the chatbot
involvement in the guest experience, customers should also have access to an
easy opt-out, with the option of speaking to and/or seeking the assistance of a
live human agent at any time.

Chatbots
add one more means for hoteliers to provide their guests with an elevated guest
experience while driving up direct bookings, resulting in rising revenues for
the hotel.

Friday, January 26, 2018

Hospitality industry forecasters gathered in Los
Angeles this week for the Americas Lodging Investment Summit (ALIS) and
forecasted high demand would continue to outpace supply during 2018. STR is
predicting a supply growth rate of 2 percent, while demand will grow by 2.3
percent in 2018 when compared to 2017. Furthermore, STR forecasts a
year-over-year occupancy growth rate of 0.3 percent, average daily rate to rise
by 2.4 percent and revenue per available room to rise by 2.7 percent. FullStory Here:

U.S. Millennial Travelers
Prefer Hotels Over Homesharing

Contrary to widely held beliefs, a new report
has found that U.S. Millennial travelers (ages 20 to 36) prefer full-service
hotels over homesharing or owner-direct services like Airbnb. Only 23 percent
of the 1,500 survey respondents stated their preferred type of accommodation to
be short-term apartments and/or condo rentals. The majority of Millennial
travelers prefer full-service hotels, with 35 percent stating upscale, luxury
or resorts are their preferred accommodations. The report was published by
Resonance Consultancy and went on to say U.S. Millennials will spend $200
billion during 2018, with much of their spending on travel and tourism. FullStory Here:

Hotel industry hails
federal tax cuts

During the recent Americas Lodging Investment
Summit in Los Angeles a number of hospitality industry executives expressed
their optimism regarding the recently enacted tax cuts and their impact on the
industry. The expectation is for the cuts to spur increased leisure and
business travel demand for hotels. The belief is that workers receiving higher
paychecks will have more income at their discretion for leisure travel, while
tax cuts for corporations should result in the pursuit of growth leading to
increased business travel. Full Story Here:

According to data published by STR, the U.S.
hotel industry reported negative performance figures for the week of 14-20
January 2018. Compared to the same week last year, industry-wide occupancy
dropped by -1.5 percent to 55.4 percent by the end of the week. Average daily
rate fell by -1.7 percent to $120.55 for the week. Revenue per available room
was down -3.2 percent to end the week at $66.79. Full Story Here:

Friday, January 19, 2018

Booking.com has published the
results of their 2017 Guest Review Awards which ranks hospitality
properties around the world. The most significant change from previous rankings
is the growing shift towards private accommodations and away from traditional
hotel properties. The survey was conducted with 19,000 travelers in 26
countries. The results show that one third of respondents would prefer to stay in a holiday rental instead of a hotel during 2018. 40 percent would like to
stay in a unique form of accommodation on their next trip. Full Story Here:

UNWTO: Global tourism up in 2017

According
to data published by the United Nations World Tourism Organization (UNWTO),
tourism on a global level increased by 7 percent during 2017. During 2017, there
were a total of 1.3 billion international arrivals. Further growth of between 4
and 5 percent is projected for 2018 by the UNWTO. The figures last year
represented the strongest growth in global tourism in seven years. Full StoryHere:

National Geographic Traveler Names U.S. Cities ‘On the Rise’

National
Geographic Traveler published its list of the 29 ‘Cities on the Rise’. The list
was compiled based on a unique set of metrics and expert picks from its
editors. The magazine analyzed millions of consumer ratings and reviews and
broke the list down by population sizes. Traveler also worked closely with
global destination branding advisors Resonance Consultancy to develop a Small Cities
Index. The list includes 10 categories and related features. Full Story Here:

STR: US hotel results for week ending 13 January

In
year-over-year comparison the U.S. hotel industry posted positive performance
figures for the week of 7-13 January 2018. Industry-wide occupancy was +0.2
percent higher, rising to 56.7 percent for the week. Average daily rate rose by
+5.4 percent to finish the week at $129.08. Revenue per available room climbed
upward by +5.5 percent to end the week at $73.16. Full Story Here:

Wednesday, January 17, 2018

The efforts by hoteliers to elevate the hotel
experience for their guests have resulted in a number of transformative
innovations across the hospitality industry. Among the innovative technologies
adopted by a number of hotels and chains has been instant messaging. Largely
implemented via hotel apps and messaging channels using mobile technology,
messaging has become another tool through which hotels and their guests can
communicate and connect. Messaging is somewhat labor-intensive since it
requires a human agent to respond to each interaction with the customer.
Chatbots however, offer hotels an automated solution for technologically
keeping the lines of communication open with guests, but with a higher degree
of efficiency.

Many requests made by hotel guests are of an
extremely routine nature. Chatbots have the capability to automate a
significant amount of the responses needed by the hotel at any given time.
Users always have an opportunity to escalate their request to a live human
staff member if they feel they are not being given a satisfactory response from
the chatbot. However, in most cases the guest seeking answers to simple
questions will find the chatbot more than adequate for their needs.
Particularly regarding younger travelers, many 21st Century hotel guests would
prefer to make an inquiry of a chatbot as opposed to calling down to the front
desk for their request.

The traveling public has grown accustomed to the
instant flow of information. Many do not have the inclination to call hotel
staff to ask a question, nor the patience to wait for an answer. A hotel
chatbot has the capability to give relevant responses to the common questions,
comments and requests made by guests. This empowers hotel staff to service
face-to-face guest interactions more effectively.

When driven by artificial intelligence (AI) and
machine learning, chatbots can handle more complex tasks, particularly in
regards to elevating the guest experience and providing improved customer
personalization. Going forward, as AI powered chatbots gain experience through
machine learning, this technology offers exciting possibilities for hoteliers
and their guests. Yet another technology fueled tool at the disposal of hotels
in order to earn and keep continued guest loyalty.

In part 2 we will see more advantages for
hoteliers in implementing chatbots, in addition to some best practices for
their implementation.

Friday, January 12, 2018

Hospitality industry experts are expecting
Google Hotel Ads to play a major role in reshaping the hotel booking
marketplace. The ads onGoogle.comand
Google Maps are designed to showcase large chain hotel properties, resulting in
increased direct bookings for those companies. Google intends to combine the
ads with new loyalty member opportunities in order to elevate their value to
the major hotel brands. These changes are coming about as corporate hoteliers
are striving to compete with the threat of home booking sites such as Airbnb.
Full Story Here:

Destinations Are the Top
Factor for Turning Business Trips into Leisure Ones

The online travel agency Expedia has published
the results of a study regarding the factors which make business travelers
willing to mix leisure time into their work-related travel. The research
indicates that 43 percent of business trips combine the two and 66 percent of
those “bleisure” travelers spend more while at their destination. This behavior is related the money they saved traveling there and back home. The number one
deciding factor for making a trip “bleisure” is how exciting the
city/destination is for the traveler. Full Story Here:

PwC: Global economic growth
in 2018 on track to be fastest since 2011

In what should be great news for hoteliers and
other businesses around the world, PwC is predicting global economic activity
to experience its fastest growth rate since 2011. According to PwC’s Global
Economy Watch, the world’s economy is projected to grow in terms of purchasing
power by nearly 4 percent. This will result in $5 trillion being added
to global output as valued currently. Nearly 70 percent of the economic growth
will take place between the U.S., emerging Asia, and Europe. Full Story Here:

According to data published by STR, the U.S.
hotel industry reported positive performance figures for the week of 31
December 2017 through 6 January 2018. When compared to the same period last
year, industry-wide occupancy rose by +3.6 percent to 48.7 percent. Average
daily rate climbed up by +5.8 percent to reach $124.33. Revenue
per available room jumped upward by +9.6 percent to end the week at $60.59.
Full Story Here:

Thursday, January 11, 2018

Hotels, which are affirmatively responding to
the demand by the traveling public for a personalized hotel guest experience,
recognize the need for effective management tools in that regard. Guest
experience managers can now effectively keep track of how every guest
experiences the hotel at each step of their journey, from booking to social
media and review commentary post-stay.

The property management system is truly the core
of managing the hotel experience of all guests. Particularly on-property, a cloud-based
PMS can have a tremendous impact on how the guest perceives their hotel stay.
The 21st Century, travelers seek greater control of their own hotel guest
experience from beginning to end. The guests expect the technology of their
everyday lives will carry over into their experience while at the hotel. Just
one example, a mobile app provided by the hotel and driven in the cloud by the
hotel’s PMS will empower them to do so. A cloud-based PMS gives hoteliers the
freedom and real-time flexibility to leverage mobile technology to the fullest.
This is an advantage of cloud-based technology which directly impacts the
guests and their perceptions.

For another example, travelers bring their own
entertainment content with them on their mobile devices everywhere they go.
They desire television access to their various content services such as Hulu,
Amazon, and Netflix. Smart televisions provided in-room would give hotel guests
the ability to do so, making them feel more at home. The in-room guest
experience is being completely transformed. Cloud-based technology enables
guests to control, either through their own mobile device or one provided by
the hotel, all aspects of their hotel room.

Cloud-driven PMS systems will facilitate hotels
in offering unprecedented levels of guest personalization, and do so at a
significantly lower cost than legacy systems. With a state-of-the-art PMS,
guest experience managers can efficiently keep track of hotel guests at every
point of their stay and interaction with the property. At each of these points,
data is collected which is stored and compiled, providing managers with guest
preferences as well as detailed histories. The PMS, when seamlessly integrated
with a similarly cloud-based Customer Relationship Management module, can
enable hotel sales and marketing departments to relevantly make future
recommendations and offers to each and every guest.

Offering travelers true hospitality is the
specialty of hoteliers. The experiences of their guests and perceptions
afterwards can be greatly elevated when hotel management and staff are provided
the tools necessary to make it a reality.

Friday, January 5, 2018

The
U.S. hotel industry turned out better than predicted performance numbers for
2017. This was the result of a generally more robust economy, decreased
unemployment, and a rise in consumer confidence. Industry experts from STR, PwC
and CBRE have now published their Q1 2018 projections for the U.S. hotel
industry. Predictions for the first quarter of 2018 are optimistic, but
cautiously so in light of challenges the industry faces in the coming year.
Full Story Here:

Survey: Big Increase in Travel Frequency Expected in 2018

The
results of a survey conducted by The GO Group, LLC has been published which
indicate a likely increase in both business and leisure travel during 2018. The
survey respondents were asked about their trade plans for the year and 27
percent said they plan on more business travel in 2018. Further, 33 percent of
those surveyed stated they expected to travel more for leisure during the
coming year. Only 6 percent of respondents planned on less
business or leisure travel in 2018. Full Story Here:

Travel industry to launch coalition in response to drop in
international visits to U.S.

In
response to a decline in international tourism to the U.S., according to a
report by the National Travel and Tourism Office, the U.S. Travel Assn. is
launching a campaign to reverse the downturn. The trade group is forming a
coalition with “Visit USA”. The campaign is
designed to present a message to the world that the U.S. welcomes international
visitors. Full Story Here:

STR: US hotel results for week ending 30 December

Compared
to the same period last year, the U.S. hotel industry reported declines in all
three key performance figures for the week of 24-30 December 2017. According to
data published by STR, industry-wide occupancy fell -5.4 percent to 51.6
percent for the week. Average daily rate dropped -1.4 percent to finish the
week at $131.56. Revenue per available room was down by -6.7 percent to end the
week at $67.90. The negative performance is attributed to the comparison week
in 2016 including New Year’s Eve. Full Story Here: